Taiwanese FPD Makers to Start AMOLED Mass-production This Year

Taipei, March 7, 2012 (CENS)--The just-ended Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain has further triggered the hot topic of smartphones, the major application for double-emission active matrix organic light-emit diode (AMOLED) panels, bringing more business opportunities for Taiwan's flat panel display (FPD) makers, among which AU Optronics Corp. (AUO), Chimei Innolux Corp., and RiTdisplay Corp. are expected to kick off mass production in the second quarter or second half.

Industry sources pointed out that major international cellphone vendors have been seeking good suppliers of lighter and thinner smartphone panels, including Apple, HTC and Nokia. AMOLED features better color rendition, energy-saving performance and better display performance etc., making such panel a suitable choice for smartphone display.

Paul Peng, president of AUO, the second-largest maker of thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels in Taiwan, pointed out that more and more handheld and mobile devices will adopt AMOLED panels, and the increasing demand is driving Korean panel makers Samsung and LG Display to aggressively expand technological and production capacity.

AUO will begin mass production of small-sized AMOLED panels for smartphone and tablet-PC applications, as well as developing large-sized AMOLED panels, including 32-inch products, Peng said.

AUO said it would utilize a 3.5th-generation (3.5G) plant in Taiwan and a 4.5G low temperature poly-silicon (LTPS) TFT-LCD factory in Singapore to produce AMOLED products.

With strong growth in smartphones, AMOLED shipments are estimated to have reached 90 million units in 2011, up 97% year-on-year (YoY), while revenue is expected to grow to US$3.36 billion, up 169% YoY, according to the latest NPD DisplaySearch report.